This article first appeared on GuruFocus.
Autodesk (NASDAQ:ADSK), the design and construction-software company, slid more than 5% after hours, with the stock priced at $259.39. The trigger was simple: third-quarter adjusted profit guidance came in soft as MaintainX financing and operating costs started biting. Growth remains alive. The near-term bill just got bigger.
The quarter itself delivered plenty of muscle. Revenue jumped 16% to $2.046 billion. Operating cash flow climbed 25% to $575 million. Free cash flow reached $561 million, producing a hefty 27.4% margin. Make revenue surged 26%, easily beating Design’s 16% growth.
Now the valuation gets interesting. Autodesk trades 25.63% below its $348.77 GF Value estimate, a deep gap that shows how much skepticism is already sitting in the stock. The $3.6 billion MaintainX deal must now prove it can widen Autodesk’s platform faster than acquisition costs and general-purpose AI can squeeze it. Cash generation is not the problem. Convincing investors that the expansion will create durable value is.